Moldova's natural gas, oil deposits to be granted to concession for 40 years

Chisinau, 20 July /MOLDPRES/ - The government will select, by tender, a company due to carry out, by concession, works of prospecting and assessing the natural gas and oil deposits in southern Moldova, according to a decision by the cabinet, which today approved conditions for organization and holding the tender as well as conditions for granting to concession.
Companies with international experience of at least 20 years in carrying out works of prospecting and evaluating oil and gas deposits will be allowed to take part in the tender. Also, the competitors should have specialized managerial capacity, advanced technologies, equipment and techniques. Another requirement is that the firm due to submit the file for the tender is “to have made investments worth at least 50 million dollars in projects on exploring and producing oil and gas in any country of the world.”   
The goal of the concession is to optimize and diversity Moldova’s energy resources and ensure the country’s energy security. The right to carry out works of prospecting and assessing gas and oil deposits will be granted to concession for a five-year period, with their subsequent exploitation for a 40-year term, with possibility to extend the period by five years, at a request by the concessionaire, but will cumulatively not exceed a period of 50 years.
The works of geological research for gas and oil on the territory of Moldova started in 1947-53. The works lasted, with short breaks, till 1972, when a decision was passed to cease prospecting. In 1995, the government signed an agreement on concession with Redeco Ltd from the USA, which was to explore and extract oil and gas from southern Moldova during 20 years. In 2007, the cabinet withdrew from the company the exclusive right to exploit deposits, as the company had failed to fulfill its obligations.  
Presently, Moldova has no enough financial possibilities to carry out works of prospecting/geological explorations of hydrocarbons; therefore, after a feasibility study had been carried out, the authorities ruled to start a public/private partnership for granting the concerned works to concession.    
“This will be the biggest project carried out in Moldova in the 25 years of independence,” Environment Minister Valeriu Munteanu said.   
(Reporter V. Bercu, editor A. Raileanu)